Planning, Budgeting & Forecasting We use the process of Planning, Budgeting & Forecasting (Planning Process) as the vehicle to evaluate, revise, report, and monitor strategic clarity, operating effectiveness and financial performance. Experience has shown that businesses often encounter significant discrepancies between actual performance and expectations. Business plans are commonly inexact and subjective however, plans need not nor should be. The Planning Process should be objective, fact-based, and quantitative. A robust, reliable, and relevant Planning Process combines strategy, operations, finance, sales, marketing, and resources into one executable roadmap. Building a plan that retains its relevance despite changes in circumstances (robust); produces results that are meaningful and expected (reliable); and are applicable to the business (relevant) requires discipline, candor, collaboration, integrity, and experience. The absence of a good plan makes it difficult, if not impoosible, to deliver superior business results. Moreover, customers, shareholders, lenders and even employees may question the viability and value of the business thus potentially starving the company of critical elements of success (sales, capital and people). The Planning Process is the vehicle we use most effectively to address the obstacles to superior business performance. |